Grade 05: French

In this unit, 'Describing my school', you learn to describe my school. Lessons are short and playful, with objects, pictures and talk. You see it, say it, then do it alone.

• Listen first: your teacher or a recording says the new words or sentences from 'Describing my school' twice. You repeat them aloud.
• Notice the pattern: find where the new sound, word form or sentence rule appears in a short text and mark it.
• Use it: describe my school, first with help, then alone.
• Check and fix: read your work aloud once more; fix one thing you hear is wrong.

Step by step.

1. Step 1, Describe the buildings. Mon école est grande et propre. [My school is big and clean.] Il y a vingt salles de classe, une cour, une bibliothèque et une cantine. [There are twenty classrooms, a yard, a library and a canteen.] Use il y a for there is and there are.
2. Step 2, Describe your class. Ma classe est lumineuse. [My class is bright.] Il y a vingt-cinq élèves. [There are twenty-five pupils.] Ma maîtresse est gentille. [My teacher is kind.] Notice maîtresse is feminine, so the adjective gentille ends with e.
3. Step 3, Say what you do and like. Ma matière préférée, c'est les maths. [My favourite subject is maths.] Je mange à la cantine. [I eat at the canteen.] À la récréation, je joue dans la cour. [At break I play in the yard.] Ask your partner the same.
4. Step 4, Dialogue. Élève A : Comment est ton école ? [What is your school like?] Élève B : Elle est grande, avec une belle bibliothèque. [It is big with a lovely library.] Élève A : Tu aimes ta classe ? [Do you like your class?] Élève B : Oui, j'adore ma classe ! [Yes, I love my class!]
5. Step 5, Fix errors. A child says Il y a vingt élève. Correction: Il y a vingt élèves, because the noun is plural. Another says ma école; use mon école, because mon is used before a vowel sound.
6. Step 6, Your turn: write four sentences about your school. Model answer: Mon école est petite mais jolie. Il y a douze classes et une grande cour. Ma matière préférée, c'est l'anglais. Je suis très content. [My school is small but pretty. There are twelve classes and a big yard. My favourite subject is English. I am very happy.]

Activity. About 20 to 30 minutes of class work, then one short practice task for home. Keep evidence: one page in your learning book.

Standard to meet. Describe my school: at least 4 of 5 attempts correct, said or written, with one real example from home or school.

In this unit, 'Regular verbs: er, ir, re', you learn to conjugate regular verbs. Lessons are short and playful, with objects, pictures and talk. You see it, say it, then do it alone.

• Listen first: your teacher or a recording says the new words or sentences from 'Regular verbs: er, ir, re' twice. You repeat them aloud.
• Notice the pattern: find where the new sound, word form or sentence rule appears in a short text and mark it.
• Use it: conjugate regular verbs, first with help, then alone.
• Check and fix: read your work aloud once more; fix one thing you hear is wrong.

Step by step.

1. Step 1, Verbs ending in er follow one pattern. parler [to speak]: je parle, tu parles, il parle, nous parlons, vous parlez, ils parlent. Replace er with the endings e, es, e, ons, ez, ent. Example: Nous parlons français. [We speak French.]
2. Step 2, Verbs in ir like finir follow another. je finis, tu finis, il finit, nous finissons, vous finissez, ils finissent. Example: Elle finit ses devoirs. [She finishes her homework.] Nous finissons à quatre heures. [We finish at four o'clock.]
3. Step 3, Verbs in re like vendre [to sell]: je vends, tu vends, il vend, nous vendons, vous vendez, ils vendent. Example: Il vend des fruits. [He sells fruit.] The il form has no ending, only the stem vend.
4. Step 4, Practise a mixed dialogue. Maman : Qu'est-ce que tu fais ? [What are you doing?] L'enfant : Je finis mon exercice. [I am finishing my exercise.] Maman : Tu parles de quoi ? [What are you talking about?] L'enfant : Je parle du voyage. [I am talking about the trip.]
5. Step 5, Fix errors. A child says nous parlez. Correction: nous parlons, because nous goes with ons. Another says je finit. Correction: je finis, because je takes s in the ir pattern. Also ils vend should be ils vendent.
6. Step 6, Your turn: conjugate habiter [to live] with je, nous and ils, then complete: Elles (finir) leur travail. Model answer: j'habite, nous habitons, ils habitent. Elles finissent leur travail. [I live, we live, they live. They finish their work.]

Activity. About 20 to 30 minutes of class work, then one short practice task for home. Keep evidence: one page in your learning book.

Standard to meet. Conjugate regular verbs: at least 4 of 5 attempts correct, said or written, with one real example from home or school.

In this unit, 'Negation and articles', you learn to use ne pas and articles. Lessons are short and playful, with objects, pictures and talk. You see it, say it, then do it alone.

• Listen first: your teacher or a recording says the new words or sentences from 'Negation and articles' twice. You repeat them aloud.
• Notice the pattern: find where the new sound, word form or sentence rule appears in a short text and mark it.
• Use it: use ne pas and articles, first with help, then alone.
• Check and fix: read your work aloud once more; fix one thing you hear is wrong.

Step by step.

1. Step 1, To make a sentence negative put ne before the verb and pas after it. Je parle anglais. [I speak English.] Je ne parle pas anglais. [I do not speak English.] Before a vowel ne becomes n': Il n'aime pas le lait. [He does not like milk.]
2. Step 2, Learn definite and indefinite articles. le, la, l', les [the]; un, une, des [a, some]. Example: J'ai un chat et des poissons. [I have a cat and some fish.] Le chat est noir. [The cat is black.] Choose le for masculine, la for feminine.
3. Step 3, Learn partitive articles. du, de la, de l' [some], used for things you cannot count: Je mange du pain. [I eat some bread.] Je bois de l'eau. [I drink some water.] Elle mange de la soupe. [She eats some soup.]
4. Step 4, After a negative, un, une, des, du, de la change to de or d'. Je n'ai pas de frère. [I do not have a brother.] Je ne mange pas de pain. [I do not eat bread.] Il n'a pas d'amis. [He does not have friends.]
5. Step 5, Fix errors. A child says Je mange pas de viande. Correction: Je ne mange pas de viande, because ne is needed. Another says Je n'ai pas des amis. Correction: Je n'ai pas d'amis. A third says Je ne bois pas du lait; say pas de lait.
6. Step 6, Your turn: make these negative: Elle a un vélo. Nous buvons du thé. J'aime les carottes. Model answer: Elle n'a pas de vélo. Nous ne buvons pas de thé. Je n'aime pas les carottes. [She has no bike. We do not drink tea. I do not like carrots.]

Activity. About 20 to 30 minutes of class work, then one short practice task for home. Keep evidence: one page in your learning book.

Standard to meet. Use ne pas and articles: at least 4 of 5 attempts correct, said or written, with one real example from home or school.

In this unit, 'Nationalities and character', you learn to describe people. Lessons are short and playful, with objects, pictures and talk. You see it, say it, then do it alone.

• Listen first: your teacher or a recording says the new words or sentences from 'Nationalities and character' twice. You repeat them aloud.
• Notice the pattern: find where the new sound, word form or sentence rule appears in a short text and mark it.
• Use it: describe people, first with help, then alone.
• Check and fix: read your work aloud once more; fix one thing you hear is wrong.

Step by step.

1. Step 1, Learn nationalities with masculine and feminine. français, française [French]; italien, italienne [Italian]; indien, indienne [Indian]; marocain, marocaine [Moroccan]; anglais, anglaise [English]; espagnol, espagnole [Spanish]. They begin with a small letter.
2. Step 2, Say who you are. Je suis marocain. [I am Moroccan, a boy.] Je suis marocaine. [A girl.] Elle est italienne. [She is Italian.] Ils sont indiens. [They are Indian.] Elles sont françaises. [They are French, all girls.]
3. Step 3, Learn character adjectives. gentil, gentille [kind]; drôle [funny]; timide [shy]; courageux, courageuse [brave]; généreux, généreuse [generous]; sérieux, sérieuse [serious]. The ending eux changes to euse for a girl.
4. Step 4, Describe people. La fille est italienne. Elle est courageuse et généreuse. [The girl is Italian. She is brave and generous.] Le garçon est marocain. Il est timide mais drôle. [The boy is Moroccan. He is shy but funny.] Add parce que for a reason.
5. Step 5, Fix errors. A child says Elle est courageux. Correction: Elle est courageuse. Another says Il est indienne. Correction: Il est indien. A third writes Français with a capital; as an adjective it is français.
6. Step 6, Your turn: describe an Indian girl who is kind and serious. Model answer: La fille est indienne. Elle est gentille et sérieuse. Elle est aussi très drôle avec ses amis. [The girl is Indian. She is kind and serious. She is also very funny with her friends.]

Activity. About 20 to 30 minutes of class work, then one short practice task for home. Keep evidence: one page in your learning book.

Standard to meet. Describe people: at least 4 of 5 attempts correct, said or written, with one real example from home or school.

On the slide: L1 Basic · First words and greetings

Notes: Greet someone, give your name and count to ten in French. Notes: teach Bonjour (hello) and Je m'appelle... (my name is...) with a smile and gesture; learners greet five classmates and say their own name, with no reading or writing needed yet.

On the slide: L2 Awareness · Sounds, spelling and simple phrases

Notes: Pronounce common French sounds and read short phrases about family, colours and food. Notes: show that final consonants are often silent, as in petit (small); learners read ten word cards aloud, then match each to a picture.

This course: Grade 05 French is at this level. Its units include Describing my school; Regular verbs: er, ir, re; Negation and articles; Nationalities and character.

On the slide: L3 Foundation · Present tense and simple sentences

Notes: Write and say ten sentences about yourself using regular verbs and the verbs être (to be) and avoir (to have). Notes: give a gap-fill on Je suis... and J'ai...; learners complete it with their own details and swap with a partner to check agreement.

On the slide: L4 Practitioner · Past and future in conversation

Notes: Talk about yesterday and next week using the passé composé and the near future. Notes: model J'ai mangé (I ate) and Je vais manger (I am going to eat); learners interview a partner for three minutes, then write six sentences in the past and the future.

On the slide: L5 Specialist · Argument, texts and accuracy

Notes: Write a 250-word opinion piece and summarise an authentic article, using the subjunctive where needed. Notes: practise Il faut que je parte (I must leave); learners mark every verb in their draft, fix agreement errors, and defend one opinion in a spoken minute.

On the slide: L6 Advanced · Literature, linguistics and style

Notes: Analyse a literary or media text for style, register and historical context, and write a critical essay in French. Notes: choose one page of prose; learners find three stylistic choices, compare them with a modern translation, and argue in 600 words which reading is stronger.

On the slide: L7 Super expert · Research, translation and teaching

Notes: Plan and carry out an original piece of French-language research or translation with a documented method. Notes: choose a narrow question, such as how one word's meaning has shifted; collect twenty sources, code them, write up findings in French, and submit them for peer review.